2013 Schedule
The UMass Lowell field hockey team is scheduled to play 18 matches in its first season at the Division I level including five conference matches against America East opponents (Albany, Fairfield, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont) and 13 non-conference matches announced head coach
Shannon Hlebichuk on Tuesday afternoon.
As a part of UMass Lowell's transition to Division I, the field hockey team will be "fast tracked" will and be eligible to compete for NCAA and America East postseason play in the 2015-2016 season.
After a pair of scrimmages, at Holy Cross (Aug. 19) and home against Colgate (Aug. 25), the River Hawks will play their first Division I match on Sept. 2 against Big Ten opponent Northwestern at the Cushing Field Complex and follow with the first annual Kennedy Cup match, played in honor of John F. Kennedy who is an alumnus of both UMass Lowell '70 and Amherst '76, in Amherst, Mass.
UMass Lowell is coming off a 19-4 record last year in its final Division II season, which saw them capture the Northeast-10 Conference Tournament championship for the third straight season and reach the NCAA Championship match for the sixth straight time.
"Everyone affiliated with our program is excited for this new chapter in our history" said Hlebichuk "Our alumni and current players have done a tremendous job of building and continuing a winning culture within our field hockey program. The expectation is that we build off that as we transition into D1."
UMass Lowell will play seven home matches at the Cushing Field Complex and 11 matches on the road. All UMass Lowell games will count towards the Rating Percentage Index, (RPI). The RPI is the quantity used to rank NCAA teams for the post season, based upon a team's wins, losses and its strength of schedule.
"Playing a majority of our games on the road will definitely be a mental and physical challenge," added Hlebichuk. "I think if we prepare our minds and body during the course of the summer and preseason we will certainly be ready for the challenge of 11 road games."
On Sept. 8 the River Hawks visit LaSalle in Philadelphia, Penn. The following weekend, UMass Lowell welcomes former NE-10 rival Bryant on Sept. 15 and Quinnipiac on Sept. 17. The River Hawks will play a neutral site game in Lock Haven against Robert Morris on Sept. 21, followed by program's first ever America East game at Maine on Sept. 28. UMass Lowell closes out the month of September the following day with a match against Villanova on Cushing Field.
October is a busy month as the River Hawks are scheduled for nine matches. UMass Lowell will kick off the month with a two game road trip to New York, against Hofstra Oct. 4 and Columbia on Oct. 6. UMass Lowell plays host to Harvard Oct. 9 and then travels to play Dartmouth on Oct.11.
To complete the road trip, UMass Lowell will play a neutral site game versus Pennsylvania at Yale on Oct. 13.
The River Hawks will finish the season with four matches coming in conference. On Oct. 18, UMass Lowell will host Vermont before traveling to play Fairfield on Oct. 20, New Hampshire on Oct. 25 and Rutgers on Oct. 27. UMass Lowell will close out the season with last year's America East champion and NCAA tournament participant Albany in Lowell on Nov. 2.
"During our first year of competing in Division 1 our expectation is to be competitive," said Hlebichuk "I would characterize our schedule as ambitious; we want the opportunity to compete against some of the top teams in the region and in the country to see where we stand."
